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A big trade involving two elite NBA point guards could be going down this summer. According to Hoops Rumors, the Indiana Pacers are trying to move away from the up and down play of George Hill and have their eye on a massive upgrade at the point guard position.
Per reports, that upgrade could be in the form of either Boston Celtics lead guard Rajon Rondo or Phoenix Suns point guard Goran Dragic.
There are conflicting reports, but the initial rumor has the Pacers mostly interested in landing Dragic following a career year with the Suns, with Rondo going to Phoenix as part of a three-team trade.
Should a deal go down, it would easily be the biggest move of the summer and quite arguably the biggest trade in over a year.
For now it’s merely words being tossed around, but Indiana is very much set on upgrading at the point, with either Dragic or Rondo easily providing the improved play they desire.
Normally the Suns and Celtics would probably balk at Indiana’s reported interest, but both teams are headed for interesting contract situations regarding their star guards. Boston, for one, has Rondo under contract for just one more season. If they are unable to massively upgrade their roster around Rondo, he’s fully expected to move on in free agency next summer. Naturally, that should lead to numerous Rondo trade rumors.
Dragic’s situations isn’t the same, but it’s not all that different, either. If Phoenix locks up restricted free agent Eric Bledsoe this summer (as they’re expected to try to), then keeping both Bledsoe and Dragic will be awfully difficult when Dragic becomes a free agent next summer. In that scenario, the Suns would be choosing the younger Bledsoe over Dragic and deciding to get something in return for Dragic now, rather than see him walk with zero value in return next year.
There are two developing factors here, however. For one, if the Suns feel they can’t hold onto Bledsoe, they probably would bow out of these trade rumors pretty quickly. Otherwise they’d be talking about making a move that would leave them without two stud guards. They know they can match any offer Bledsoe gets, though, so if they trade Dragic now they know what they’re getting into and can lock up Bledsoe and try to extend Rondo, as well.
The other factor is a bit of a missing link, as the trade rumors speculate where Rondo and Dragic could wind up, but don’t yet offer any clear compensation for the Celtics. The Suns would be losing Dragic, but at the very worst they’d gain a one-year rental of Rondo. At best, they’d secure both Rondo and Bledsoe to long-term deals and have one of the best back courts in the NBA.
Indiana, on the other hand, would see a massive upgrade at the point with Dragic. At least for now, Boston would probably only see a bit player, some cash and some draft picks. For a potential deal to go through, the Celtics would almost surely demand a bigger player to be added to the mix.
Things still need to be sorted out – specifically dealing with Boston’s compensation – but it sounds like this is one NBA trade rumor that just might have some legs.
